Head hits quickfire century as Australians take 1-nil ODI series lead

Travis Head’s 101 runs off 72 balls has helped spur an undermanned Australian lineup to an 88-run victory over Pakistan in Lahore to take a 1-nil series lead in the best-of-three ODI series.

The South Australian opened the batting with skipper Aaron Finch and the pair got the visitors off to a hot start, smashing 110 off the first 15 overs before Finch was dismissed by Zahid Mahmood for 23. With Ben McDermott by his side, Head motored towards the fastest ODI century hit by an Australian against Pakistan, taking just 70 balls. Just two balls later, however, Head skied one to deep mid-off and was on his way. McDermott brought up his first ODI half-century before a mix-up between the wickets saw him run out for 55. Marnus Labuschagne added 25 of his own before mishitting a shot over mid-off and Alex Carey was bowled for just four whilst attempting a reverse sweep. Marcus Stoinis and Cameron Green put together a handy 47-run partnership before Stoinis was bowled by Haris Rauf for 26. Green smashed 40 runs off just 30 balls to give his side a much-needed end-of-innings boost, as Australia set Pakistan a strong but reachable target of 314.

Haris Rauf was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with team-best figures of 2-for-44 off eight overs, whilst Zahid Mahmood finished with 2-for-59. Iftikhar Ahmed and Khushdil Shah each snagged a wicket, whilst opening bowlers Hasan Ali and Mohammad Wasim, Jr. finished with the highest economy rates of the Pakistani bowlers and were unable to claim any wickets.

Pakistan’s first wicket fell relatively early, with Fakhar Zaman chipping a Sean Abbott delivery straight to Travis Head at wide mid-off at just 18. Test stars Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam poured on a 96-run partnership before Mitchell Swepson dismissed Babar leg-before on 57. Head claimed Saud Shakeel for just three before Mohammad Rizwan and Iftikhar Ahmed both departed cheaply before Imam reached the eighth century of his ODI career. Debutant Nathan Ellis rattled Imam’s stumps not long after to claim the first wicket of his ODI career. Pakistan’s final eight wickets fell for just 105 runs as they were bowled out for 225; Khushdil Shah was the only one of Pakistan’s final six batters to crack double-digits.

Adam Zampa finishing with match-best figures of 4-for-38 off his 10 overs, doing a superb job of cleaning up Pakistan’s tail and ending any chance of a miracle finish. Swepson and Head each finished with a pair of wickets, whilst quicks Abbott and Ellis also got their names in the wickets column. Head’s quickfire century and two big wickets were enough for the 28-year-old to claim Player of the Match honours after a frustrating Test series.

The second ODI of the series will be played tomorrow night again in Lahore, as Australia set their sights on an unassailable 2-nil series lead.